Cell signaling via 3′-phosphorylated phosphoinositides has been implicated in a variety of cellular processes, e.g., malignant transformation, growth factor signaling, inflammation, and immunity (see Rameh et al., J. Biol. Chem., 274:8347-8350 (1999) for a review). The enzyme responsible for generating these phosphorylated signaling products is phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI 3-kinase; PI3K). PI3K originally was identified as an activity associated with viral oncoproteins and growth factor receptor tyrosine kinases that phosphorylates phosphatidylinositol (PI) and its phosphorylated derivatives at the 3′-hydroxyl of the inositol ring (Panayotou et al., Trends Cell Biol 2:358-60 (1992)).
Levels of phosphatidylinositol-3,4,5-triphosphate (PIP3), the primary product of PI 3-kinase activation, increase upon treatment of cells with a variety of agonists. PI 3-kinase activation, therefore, is believed to be involved in a range of cellular responses including cell growth, differentiation, and apoptosis (Parker et al., Curr. Biol., 5:577-99 (1995); Yao et al., Science, 267:2003-05 (1995)). Though the downstream targets of phosphorylated lipids generated following PI 3-kinase activation have not been well characterized, emerging evidence suggests that pleckstrin-homology domain- and FYVE-finger domain-containing proteins are activated when binding to various phosphatidylinositol lipids (Sternmark et al., J. Cell. Sci., 112:4175-83 (1999); Lemmon et al., Trends Cell Biol., 7:237-42 (1997)). In vitro, some isoforms of protein kinase C (PKC) are directly activated by PIP3, and the PKC-related protein kinase, PKB, has been shown to be activated by PI 3-kinase (Burgering et al., Nature, 376:599-602 (1995)).
Presently, the PI 3-kinase enzyme family is divided into three classes based on their substrate specificities. Class I PI3Ks can phosphorylate phosphatidylinositol (PI), phosphatidylinositol-4-phosphate, and phosphatidylinositol-4,5-biphosphate (PIP2) to produce phosphatidylinositol-3-phosphate (PIP), phosphatidylinositol-3,4-biphosphate, and phosphatidylinositol-3,4,5-triphosphate, respectively. Class II PI3Ks phosphorylate PI and phosphatidylinositol-4-phosphate, whereas Class III PI3Ks can only phosphorylate PI.
The initial purification and molecular cloning of PI 3-kinase revealed that it was a heterodimer consisting of p85 and p110 subunits (Otsu et al., Cell, 65:91-104 (1991); Hiles et al., Cell, 70:419-29 (1992)). Since then, four distinct Class I PI3Ks have been identified, designated PI3K α, β, δ, and γ, each consisting of a distinct 110 kDa catalytic subunit and a regulatory subunit. More specifically, three of the catalytic subunits, i.e., p110α, p110β, and p110γ, each interact with the same regulatory subunit, i.e., p85, whereas p110γ interacts with a distinct p101 regulatory subunit. As described below, the patterns of expression of each of these PI3Ks in human cells and tissues also are distinct. Though a wealth of information has been accumulated on the cellular functions of PI 3-kinases in general, the roles played by the individual isoforms are largely unknown.
Cloning of bovine p110α has been described. This protein was identified as related to the Saccharomyces cerevisiae protein: Vps34p, a protein involved in vacuolar protein processing. The recombinant p110α product was also shown to associate with p85α, to yield a PI3K activity in transfected COS-1 cells. See Hiles et al., Cell, 70, 419-29 (1992).
The cloning of a second human p110 isoform, designated p110β, is described in Hu et al., Mol. Cell. Biol., 13:7677-88 (1993). This isoform is said to associate with p85 in cells, and to be ubiquitously expressed, as p110β mRNA has been found in numerous human and mouse tissues, as well as in human umbilical vein endothelial cells, Jurkat human leukemic T cells, 293 human embryonic kidney cells, mouse 3T3 fibroblasts, HeLa cells, and NBT2 rat bladder carcinoma cells. Such wide expression suggests that the p110β isoform is broadly important in signaling pathways.
Identification of the p110δ isoform of PI 3-kinase is described in Chantry et al., J. Biol. Chem., 272:19236-41 (1997). It was observed that the human p110δ isoform is expressed in a tissue-restricted fashion. It is expressed at high levels in lymphocytes and lymphoid tissues, suggesting that the protein might play a role in PI 3-kinase-mediated signaling in the immune system. Details concerning the p110δ isoform also can be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,858,753; 5,822,910; and 5,985,589, each incorporated herein by reference. See also, Vanhaesebroeck et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 94:4330-5 (1997), and International Publication No WO 97/46688.
In each of the PI3Kα, β, and δ subtypes, the p85 subunit acts to localize PI 3-kinase to the plasma membrane by the interaction of its SH2 domain with phosphorylated tyrosine residues (present in an appropriate sequence context) in target proteins (Rameh et al., Cell, 83:821-30 (1995)). Two isoforms of p85 have been identified, p85α, which is ubiquitously expressed, and p85β, which is primarily found in the brain and lymphoid tissues (Volinia et al., Oncogene, 7:789-93 (1992)). Association of the p85 subunit to the PI 3-kinase p110α, β, or δ catalytic subunits appears to be required for the catalytic activity and stability of these enzymes. In addition, the binding of Ras proteins also upregulates PI 3-kinase activity.
The cloning of p110γ revealed still further complexity within the PI3K family of enzymes (Stoyanov et al., Science, 269:690-93 (1995)). The p110γ isoform is closely related to p110α and p110β (45-48% identity in the catalytic domain), but as noted does not make use of p85 as a targeting subunit. Instead, p110γ contains an additional domain termed a “pleckstrin homology domain” near its amino terminus. This domain allows interaction of p110γ with the βγ subunits of heterotrimeric G proteins and this interaction appears to regulate its activity.
The p101 regulatory subunit for PI3 Kgamma was originally cloned in swine, and the human ortholog identified subsequently (Krugmann et al., J. Biol. Chem., 274:17152-8 (1999)). Interaction between the N-terminal region of p101 with the N-terminal region of p110γ appears to be critical for the PI3Kγ activation through Gβγ mentioned above.
A constitutively active PI3K polypeptide is described in International Publication No. WO 96/25488. This publication discloses preparation of a chimeric fusion protein in which a 102-residue fragment of p85 known as the inter-SH2 (iSH2) region is fused through a linker region to the N-terminus of murine p110. The p85 iSH2 domain apparently is able to activate PI3K activity in a manner comparable to intact p85 (Klippel et al., Mol. Cell. Biol., 14:2675-85 (1994)).
Thus, PI 3-kinases can be defined by their amino acid identity or by their activity. Additional members of this growing gene family include more distantly related lipid and protein kinases including Vps34 TOR1, TOR2 of Saccharomyces cerevisiae (and their mammalian homologs such as FRAP and mTOR), the ataxia telangiectasia gene product (ATR), and the catalytic subunit of DNA-dependent protein kinase (DNA-PK). See generally, Hunter, Cell, 83:1-4 (1995).
PI 3-kinase also appears to be involved in a number of aspects of leukocyte activation. A p85-associated PI 3-kinase activity has been shown to physically associate with the cytoplasmic domain of CD28, which is an important costimulatory molecule for the activation of T-cells in response to antigen (Pages et al., Nature, 369:327-29 (1994); Rudd, Immunity, 4:527-34 (1996)). Activation of T cells through CD28 lowers the threshold for activation by antigen and increases the magnitude and duration of the proliferative response. These effects are linked to increases in the transcription of a number of genes including interleukin-2 (IL2), an important T cell growth factor (Fraser et al., Science, 251:313-16 (1991)). Mutation of CD28 such that it can no longer interact with PI 3-kinase leads to a failure to initiate IL2 production, suggesting a critical role for PI 3-kinase in T cell activation.
Specific inhibitors against individual members of a family of enzymes provide invaluable tools for deciphering functions of each enzyme. Two compounds, LY294002 and wortmannin, have been widely used as PI 3-kinase inhibitors. These compounds, however, are nonspecific PI3K inhibitors, as they do not distinguish among the four members of Class I PI 3-kinases. For example, the IC50 values of wortmannin against each of the various Class I PI 3-kinases are in the range of 1-10 nM. Similarly, the IC50 values for LY294002 against each of these PI 3-kinases is about 1 μM (Fruman et al., Ann. Rev. Biochem., 67:481-507 (1998)). Hence, the utility of these compounds in studying the roles of individual Class I PI 3-kinases is limited.

Based on studies using wortmannin, evidence exists that PI 3-kinase function also is required for some aspects of leukocyte signaling through G-protein coupled receptors (Thelen et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 91:4960-64 (1994)). Moreover, it has been shown that wortmannin and LY294002 block neutrophil migration and superoxide release. However, because these compounds do not distinguish among the various isoforms of PI3K, it remains unclear which particular PI3K isoform or isoforms are involved in these phenomena.
In view of the above considerations, it is clear that existing knowledge is lacking with respect to structural and functional features of the PI 3-kinase enzymes, including subcellular localization, activation states, substrate affinities, and the like. Moreover, the functions that these enzymes perform in both normal and diseased tissues remains to be elucidated. In particular, the function of PI3Kδ in leukocytes has not been characterized previously, and knowledge concerning its function in human physiology remains limited. The coexpression in these tissues of other PI3K isoforms has heretofore confounded efforts to segregate the activities of each enzyme. Furthermore, separation of the activities of the various PI3K isozymes may not be possible without identification of inhibitors that demonstrate selective inhibition characteristics. Indeed, applicants presently are not aware that such selective, or better, specific, inhibitors of PI3K isozymes have been demonstrated.
Thus, a need exists in the art for further structural characterization of the PI3Kδ polypeptide. A need also exists for functional characterization of PI3Kδ. Furthermore, understanding of PI3Kδ requires further elaboration of the structural interactions of p110δ, both with its regulatory subunit and with other proteins in the cell. A need also remains for selective or specific inhibitors of PI3K isozymes, such that the functions of each isozyme can be better characterized. In particular, selective or specific inhibitors of PI3Kδ are desirable for exploring the role of this isozyme and for development of pharmaceuticals to modulate activity of the isozyme.